SEQUINS, which stands for Smart, EQUitable, INteroperable, and Secure, will coordinate major players in the Pacific Northwest to make a truly "smart" electrical grid a reality. Over a two-year period, the project will identify obstacles to smart grid growth and develop plans to overcome them through academic research, entrepreneurship, workforce training, strategic government investments, and business collaborations.
If successful, the SEQUINS planning phase will result in up to $160 million in NSF implementation funding for regional businesses, entrepreneurs, academic institutions, and others, with the ultimate goal of transforming the Pacific Northwest into a global smart grid leader. Throughout the work, the focus will be on energy equity, so that everyone in the region, regardless of location and income, benefits from the investments and the job opportunities SEQUINS will create.
"This planning grant from the National Science Foundation will bring together over thirty stakeholders from across the Pacific Northwest," said Robert Bass, associate professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at PSU's Maseeh College of Engineering and Computer Science, who is leading the planning effort. "The partners will develop a strategic plan to promote the development of an innovative smart grid technology ecosystem that delivers prosperity and energy equity to our region."
Other members of the team from Maseeh College include Antonie Jetter, Associate Dean for Research and Tong Zhang, Assistant Dean of Inclusive Innovation; PSU's Birol Yesilada, Professor Hatfield School of Government, Director Cybersecurity and Cyber Defense Policy; and Melissa Appleyard, Associate Dean of Graduate Programs in the PSU School of Business are also involved.
The NSF Engines program is a transformational investment for the nation, ensuring the U.S. remains in the vanguard of competitiveness for decades to come.
"These NSF Engines Development Awards lay the foundation for emerging hubs of innovation and potential future NSF Engines," said NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan. "These awardees are part of the fabric of NSF's vision to create opportunities everywhere and enable innovation anywhere. They will build robust regional partnerships rooted in scientific and technological innovation in every part of our nation. Through these planning awards, NSF is seeding the future for in-place innovation in communities and to grow their regional economies through research and partnerships. This will unleash ideas, talent, pathways and resources to create vibrant innovation ecosystems all across our nation."
The PSU team is leading a unique collaboration between five universities, two national laboratories, six private companies and industry organizations, and federal, state, and local government institutions.
The Pacific Northwest is an area uniquely suited for this project. As a national leader in clean energy, many households are already familiar with smart grids: their smart meters and thermostats exchange information with utilities, and many consumers opt in to "load management" programs.
The next generation of smart grids will automatically adjust load and supply-taking energy from home batteries and electric vehicles during peak demand and recharging them when there is excess supply. If enough people participate and if their energy contributions are organized and managed in novel ways with effective incentives, peaks and valleys in demand can be evened out without bringing more power plants online. The cost savings of a fully functional smart grid could save consumers $50 billion a year.
Related Links
SEQUINS
Powering The World in the 21st Century at Energy-Daily.com
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